COMPETITIVE basketball is returning to Exmouth for the first time in decades. Bridge Building Basketball Exmouth’s application to compete in the Exeter and District League starting in September has been accepted and approved.

The club will compete in the senior men’s division 2 as well as playing for the league’s Cup and Plate knock-out competitions. Just over a year since being launched, the prospect of competing in a league after so much hard work has both the players and coaches buzzing. “To say we are all merely excited is a bit of an understatement,” says club chairman and senior assistant coach Christopher Davy. “You can see a new bounce in the step of the players and coaches in training sessions.” The club will play its home games in the Sports Hall at the Exmouth Leisure Centre. The club will be given its games schedule in the near future.

The league compromises two senior men’s division and a senior ladies’ division. As far as goals for the senior team going into next season, head coach Mark Crncich says there’s no reason not to set a high bar while being realistic about targets. “We are going to be a hard-working, disciplined team with a winning mentality that will compete in every game with the ultimate goal of finishing mid-table in division 2. As a team, we have to recognize our lack of game experience and, therefore, be able to ride the highs and lows of the season with a positive outlook,” says Crncich. In other club developments, Mark Crncich has been appointed as special liaison to the Exeter League’s executive committee for the development of youth basketball in Devon.

His brief is to begin work on creating a youth basketball league in the county for boys and girls aged 18 and under. “I was very pleased to accept this appointment by the league. The long-term development of basketball in Devon requires there be a youth league for players of all ages and abilities. In the future, it can serve as a base of players for senior clubs as well as a talent pool for the England Basketball League teams that are located in Exeter, Plymouth and Torbay as well as the national league programmes in Cornwall and Taunton,” says Crncich. l The club will compete in a blue and yellow strip to reflect the sea and sand of Exmouth. It has chosen three nicknames and logos for the squad which are Jesters, Tide and Avocets.

The club is asking Journal readers to help with the choice. Which one do you like? Let us know via e-mail at exmouth.sport@archnat.co.uk and we will pass on the thoughts to the Exmouth Basketball management.